PARAMEDICS in North Ayrshire are facing increasing threats of violent attacks, new figures show.

It’s been revealed that nearly 400 addresses across Ayrshire & Arran are now “red-flagged” where medics are under such danger that they require a police escort to attend.

In total, 372 addresses in the region are red-flagged - a stark increase from just 22 in 2012.

The figures, provided by the Scottish Ambulance Service, highlight that 3,500 addresses overall are red-flagged across Scotland.

And medics in North Ayrshire are regularly faced with disgusting attacks by those who require treatment with ambulance staff being punched, spat at and even threatened with weapons.

Alcohol was deemed to be a contributing factor to the majority of incidents reported.

Last year, the Times revealed how North Ayrshire medics were called out to deal with people under the influence of drink or drugs nearly 2,000 times in the last three years - with some of paramedics ending up on the receiving end of an assault.

Irvine was shamefully home to the majority of incidents with 468 call-outs between May 2012 and 2015.

In regards to the red-flag figures, only addresses are highlighted and not specific individuals.

Statistics for the KA postcode are broken down into four separate sections:

Violence at work – addresses where aggressive and or violent behaviour has previously been experienced;

Multi Agency Public Protection Arrangement (MAPPA) – where the Ambulance Service have been advised by another agency that there is a risk to crews;

Scene Safety – Abandoned/hazardous buildings or where crews require specialist equipment;

Special Operations Response Team (SORT Response) – addresses like oil distilleries and airports, where specialist training/equipment may be required for paramedics.

And for Ayrshire & Arran, the majority of addresses paramedics are advised to take caution with are due to previous instances of violence with 149 overall.

This was followed by MAPPA (141), SORT Response (45) and Scene Safety (37)

A spokesperson for the Scottish Ambulance Service said: “The safety of ambulance staff is paramount, which is why the service takes appropriate measures to protect them.

“As one of a number of protective measures, individual addresses where there have been previous incidents of violence or threatening behaviour towards staff are flagged in control rooms.

“This means that if a 999 call comes in from a flagged address, dispatchers can identify that staff may be at risk and request additional support, from the police, if required.

“As flagged addresses change due to changes in people’s living arrangements or the use or purpose of a building, then any figures which are provided are a snapshot in time.

"If crews feel safety may be compromised, they are instructed to hold nearby the scene and await support from the police, or additional crews.”

Cunninghame South MSP, Ruth Maguire, said: “Attacks against NHS staff are clearly unacceptable and paramedics and ambulance staff should be treated at all time with the respect they deserve.

"The safety of our NHS staff is an issue that the Scottish Government takes very seriously.

"That is why the Scottish Ambulance Service take preventative measures to protect their staff, including flagging up addresses where ambulance workers could be at risk and ensuring that they have the support of their police colleagues.

"NHS staff are also protected by the Emergency Workers (Scotland) Act, which can impose a penalty of up to 12 months imprisonment, a £10,000 fine, or both, for those who attack our staff.”